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Wood floors add class and value to suite

Janet has wall units (two cherry-stained and one white) that she plans to use in her 645-square-foot condominium

She intends to leave the tile floor as is and have laminated wood flooring in a medium stain throughout the rest of the unit.

Interior designer Dolores Pian is not a big fan of laminated floors.

"They always sound tinny-plasticky and have an annoying glare. Laminated wood is like Formica for the floor," says Pian, owner of Spaces Custom Interiors.

She advises upgrading to medium-toned wood that looks classy and will add value to this condo.

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Pian also urges Janet to use the media room for storage. One of the cherry wall units will fit along the right wall in the plan shown. Pian also suggests building a closet with double hangings that runs the length of the exterior wall.

Pian would also have a floor-to-ceiling wall built next to the dishwasher. This will allow Janet to have a demilune shelf or a narrow console table (nine inches deep) in the foyer. On the wall with the refrigerator, there's space for a full-length mirror.

Pian suggests laying a three-by five-foot runner in the foyer to separate the kitchen and storage room.

She approves of the kitchen, but believes it would be improved if Janet eliminated the left sink.

"There's no need for a second sink when there's a dishwasher. Removing the sink will buy Janet a bit more counter," Pian says.

For levity and a European touch, Pian recommends a tall Cinzano poster for the kitchen that can be seen from the foyer.

Janet has room for a 48-inch-square table in the dining area. She can add a leaf when entertaining. A tall, thin china cabinet will fit in the corner beside the breakfast bar and a small hutch or buffet along the bathroom wall.

"I would lean a funky oversized mirror, with an ornate three-inch frame, against the outside wall. This will brighten the dining space and add some jazz," Pian says.

She would also like to see sexy crystal pendants with LED lights dropped over the dining table.

The living room can handle an 8- by 10-foot carpet, a three-seat sofa and two end tables.

Janet could also angle two easy chairs toward the sofa. Instead of a coffee table, Pian feels a nest of occasional tables or two-foot-square cubes would be more functional and versatile.

Pian suggests installing an art rail over the sofa for a series of artworks that Janet can rotate. She will also need track lighting to highlight the art. The closet wall is also a good spot for a poster or tall painting.

Janet could put either her white wall unit or the second cherry one against the right wall, opposite the sofa, and outfit it as an entertainment centre.

Pian approves of Janet's decision to buy a double bed for this tiny bedroom that the developer has cutely dubbed a solarium. There's also space to the right of the bed for a nightstand and for a narrow highboy on the other side.

Since Janet's suite faces south, it can get toasty in the summer and bright in the bedroom early.

"I recommend substantial drapes for both windows to keep night and morning light out and to insulate the condo against solar heat in summer and wind in the winter."

Pian would go with lavish draw drapes that pool on the left side of both windows.

Sage is an excellent colour with cherry and wood with a medium stain, Pian suggests.

She would use three shades of it on the walls. Pian advises painting the long living room wall and the bathroom the darkest. She would use the medium shade for the other living room wall and continue it along the right side of the condo – along the (exterior) bathroom and closet walls and also in the new storage room.

She would also paint the exterior kitchen walls the medium sage and save the lightest hue for the trim work and doors.

If you have a plan, send it to Best-Laid Plans, Condos, Toronto Star, 1 Yonge St., Toronto M5E 1E6. No email submissions. Designers wanting to take part can contact Donna.jean@sympatico.ca.

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